Background
Duffy grew up on the south side of Chicago, the youngest of 11 children.
Duffy grew up on the south side of Chicago, the youngest of 11 children.
He graduated from Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois with a bachelor"s degree in speech communication.
He represents the 26th Senate District which includes Barrington, Barrington Hills, North Barrington, Libertyville, Mundelein, Lake Zurich, Fox River Grove, Lakewood Hills, Cary, Hawthorn Woods, Lake in the Hills, Cuba and Kildeer. On September 10, 2015, Duffy announced he would not be running for a third term. He is co-owner of Effective Data, Incorporated. located in Schaumburg, Illinois.
Duffy was elected to the in 2008 defeating then-Round Lake Mayor Bill Gentes by sixteen points in what was originally seen to be a competitive race.
He succeeded William East. Peterson, who retired after sixteen years in the Politically, he endorsed Dave McSweeney over incumbent Representative Kent Gaffney in the 2012 Republican primary and was one of the first legislators to endorse Bruce Rauner in the 2014 Republican primary. He has endorsed Dan McConchie to succeed him in the Duffy announced he would resign from the in April, 2016 in order to lead Prevent Childhood Abuse America.
Committee Assignments
He serves on the following committees: Appropriations I, Commerce & Economic Development, Insurance, Labor, Public Health and the Committee on Pension Investments.
After starting his own independent computer company, Duffy became a board member of the National Federation of Independent Businesses Leadership Council (NFIB) of Illinois and became the Chairman of the Lake and Cook County Area Action Council for independent businesses. As a member of the Senate, Duffy served as the co-sponsor of the bill that abolished the death penalty in Illinois. He is also a past member of the Illinois Legislative Research Unit.